vengeance and a glass of port

July 26, 2010

last night, or early this morning rather,
i conquered the stóra dímun.
it began with 449 stitches,
and now, this bitch is finished!
and huge.
(the picture should give you an idea of scale here)

some notes on the stóra dímun:
it isn’t for the faint of heart.
while technically easy,
you’re gonna need a shit ton of stamina to finish it.
i probably whined more working on this shawl than on anything else i have knit thus far. endless garter stitch isn’t happy mindless knitting,
it’s chinese water torture.

but now that it’s done,
it’s like a ringing in my ear has stopped,
and i can finally appreciate its beauty.

there are only two little things that i’m concerned with.

issue the first: i cast on too tightly
and it’s making it difficult for me to get it to block in the exact position i’d like.

issue the second: i noticed a hole where i didn’t intend.
no, not an extra yarn over.

take a closer look.
yes, it’s what you think.
you’re eyes aren’t lying.
the yarn has indeed snapped,
and my stitches are moving toward oblivion.
not only am i devastated that, in it’s final hour,
stóra dímun has taken one last poisonous stab at my knitterly heart;
i’m truly sad because this shawl is a gift.
and before i even give the bugger away,
it has something truly wrong with it.

you can’t call a repair a design feature.
it’s a hole, a weak spot, a scar,
a mistake!

it doesn’t help that i noticed it after i began blocking it.
all that tugging couldn’t have been good for the hole.

it’s currently 10:45 am est.
i’m just gonna sit here for now,
watching the shawl dry,
sipping on my big glass of port.
and in a while,
i’ll unleash some tapestry needle kung fu on this shawl’s ass,
and put the final nail in its coffin.

You know, I had a blanket do something like that, at one of the corners. It was a Lizard Ridge that was knit by some 9 different people (only 16 blocks) and I was working with some VERY different gauges. With the combination of their knitting and the nature of noro, I had a block break and come partially unraveled as I stretched and whispered to it to come to shape. But it worked out. I don’t think the owner will ever notice the repair job. ever. I have faith in you fixing it and nobody will ever be able to find it. except you. send it away, to a home you almost never, if ever see, so you never have to see the mistake if it bothers you that much🙂